
Developed by Benjamin Brown and Chandralekha Singh
Purpose | To measure the effectiveness of traditional and/or research-based techniques of teaching the first and second laws of thermodynamics and thermodynamic processes. |
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Format | Pre/post, Multiple-choice |
Duration | 40 min |
Focus | Thermal / Statistical Content knowledge (first law of thermodynamics, second law of thermodynamics, PV diagrams, reversible processes, irreversible processes) |
Level | Intro college |
Research
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This is the second highest level of research validation, corresponding to at least 5 of the validation categories below.
Research Validation Summary
Based on Research Into:
- Student thinking
Studied Using:
- Student interviews
- Expert review
- Appropriate statistical analysis
Research Conducted:
- At multiple institutions
- By multiple research groups
- Peer-reviewed publication
The multiple-choice questions on the STPFaSL-short were developed by consulting with instructors of introductory courses about topics and content goals, as well as materials for these courses, and completing literature review of student difficulties with relevant topics. A preliminary distribution of questions from various topics was developed in consultation with instructors. Free-response versions of the questions were then given to students, and the responses used to create the multiple-choice answers. Students interviews were conducted and expert input incorporated at various points in the development process. Appropriate statistical analyses of difficulty, discrimination and reliability were conducted and reasonable results found, with the exception of low reliability on pre-test scores for introductory students. The developers also tested the effect of changing the order of the answer choices and found no differences between versions. The STPFaSL-short has been tested with over 2000 students enrolled in introductory and upper level undergraduate thermodynamic courses and 45 entering physics graduate students in their first semester of the graduate program. The results are published in one dissertation.
References
- B. Brown, Developing and Assessing Research-Based Tools for Teaching Quantum Mechanics and Thermodynamics, University of Pittsburgh, 2015.
- B. Brown and C. Singh, Development and validation of a conceptual survey instrument to evaluate students’ understanding of thermodynamics, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 17 (1), 010104 (2021).
Variation
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Survey of Thermodynamic Processes and First and Second Laws (long)Content knowledge Thermal / Statistical (PV diagrams, reversible processes, irreversible processes, first law of thermodynamics, second law of thermodynamics)Upper-level, Intermediate, Intro college Pre/post, Multiple-choice |